We have long known that British oysters and
other shellfish are heavily infected with norovirus. Why they are still on sale
baffles us.
It has long been obvious that pig effluent is the culprit in
many cases, maybe human sewage too.
Now, we see a connection between shellfish, pig effluent and
Hepatitis E in Scotland.
What UK governments do know, they ignore, leaving it to civil servants apparently under the impression that you can handle zoonotic disease with
increased PR and harassing anyone speaking out.
This comment is undeniable.
...“Thus, possible transmission
routes for HEV remain poorly studied in the United Kingdom (2).”...
Shipping readers will note the
reference to an incident on a cruise vessel. We looked at the official report on
a similar incident on a vessel ex the UK and came to the conclusion
that it was worthless. To us it looked like contaminated water supply.
The letter in full is here
Letter
Hepatitis E Virus Genotype 3 in Shellfish,
United Kingdom
·
To the Editor:
Bivalve mollusks (shellfish), such as mussels and oysters, are filter feeders;
they concentrate microorganisms of human and animal origin (up to 100×) from
the surrounding environment. Several recent reports have linked the incidence
of human infection with hepatitis E virus (HEV) to consumption of undercooked
pork, game products, and shellfish (1,2). Infectious HEV has been found in swine
manure and wastewater (3); therefore, application of manure to
land and subsequent runoff could contaminate coastal water, leading to
contamination of shellfish and, subsequently, possible human infection...
